García and Alvarez help Astros reach World Series
HOUSTON >> Rookie Luis García showed the poise of an October ace, MVP Yordan Alvarez stayed hot at the plate and the Houston Astros earned yet another trip to the World Series, beating the Boston Red Sox 5-0 Friday night in Game 6 of the AL Championship Series.
The Astros advanced to the World Series for the third time in five seasons. They won the championship in 2017, a crown tainted by the team’s signstealing scandal, before losing to the Washington Nationals in seven games in 2019.
Manager Dusty Baker’s team will open the World Series on Tuesday night, either at Dodger Stadium or home against Atlanta.
García pitched no-hit ball into the sixth inning, leaving to a huge ovation with two outs after a triple by Kiké Hernández.
Alvarez continued his scorching streak. The slugging designated hitter had four hits, including a triple and two doubles. He led a Game 5 win with three hits and three RBIs.
Skiing
SHIFFRIN WINS WORLD CUP OPENER >> Mikaela Shiffrin won the season-opening women’s World Cup giant slalom, beating world champion Lara Gut-Behrami in a close fight for her 70th career victory.
The American threetime overall champion sat .02 behind Gut-Behrami after the opening leg but put in another clean run in the second to edge her Swiss rival by .14.
Shiffrin became only the third skier in World Cup history to reach the 70-win mark, after Ingemar Stenmark and Linsey Vonn achieved the feat before
they finished their careers on 86 and 82 wins, respectively.
Golf MATSUYAMA HAS 1-STROKE LEAD AT ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP >>
Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama held on to a one-stroke lead at the PGA Tour’s Zozo Championship after a 2-under 68 which included a bogey on his last hole to make things interesting heading into the final round.
Cameron Tringale, who also shot 68, trailed by three strokes going to the final hole but his birdie and Matsuyama’s bogey reduced the lead to just one.
Sebastian Munoz (68), Brendan Steele (70) and Matt Wallace (70), were tied for third, four strokes behind Matsuyama.
LIM TAKES 4-STROKE LEAD AT LPGA TOURNAMENT >> Hee Jeong Lim has taken a four-stroke lead into the final round of the LPGA Tour’s BMW Ladies Championship after a 7-under 65.
Fellow South Korean players Jin Young Ko (67) and Na Rin An (69) were tied for second.
Track and field
SPRINTER QUIÑÓNEZ FATALLY SHOT IN ECUADOR >>
Ecuadorian sprinter Alex Quiñónez was fatally shot in the port city of Guayaquil, police said.
Quiñónez, who was 32, became a national hero in 2012 when he reached the 200 meter final at the London Games, finishing seventh in a race won by Usain Bolt.
Guayaquil-based newspaper El Universo reported that Quiñónez was fatally shot on a street in the northwest section of the city around 9:20 p.m. Friday and that another man was also killed.
Quiñónez won bronze in the 200 at the 2019 world championship in Doha.
Tennis
BARTY DONE FOR SEASON >> World No. 1-ranked Ash Barty won’t defend her season-ending WTA Finals title and is done for the year due to continuing COVID-19 travel and quarantine restrictions.
“I wanted to let everyone know that I won’t be competing in any further tournaments in 2021, including the WTA Finals in Mexico,” Barty said in a statement. “It was a difficult decision but I need to prioritize my body and my recovery from our 2021 season.”